Virtual
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Australia

Geoff was born the third son of Hamlyn Lavicount 'Lavi' Harris & Emily Lucy Louisa Shelley in Tumut, New South Wales on 28 October 1881. In total, he was one of 13 siblings, having seven sisters (three older) & five brothers (two older)

Geoff was the grandson of Major General Hamlyn Lavicount Harris Sr. of the Madras Infantry in the East India Company's Service

Geoff was great-grandson of Colonel Sir Thomas Noel Harris KCH, who was one of only a few officers to be present at both the Battles of Leipzig & Waterloo, being WIA & losing at the latter

On 26 December 1899, at the age of 18y 1m, Geoff, along with 'Tumut boys' John Mecham & Neville Ussher, departed Gundagai station for Sydney, with the view of undertaking physical examination for enlistment in the forces to serve in South Africa, subsequently being allocated to the Second Contingent of the 1st Australian Horse

Geoff was present with the 1st Australian Horse during all their major engagements from 23 February 1900 until returning home on 2 May 1901

During actions at Bloemfontein on 13 March 1900 a shell burst only 20 yards (18m) from Harris, killing his horse, which he was leading at the time due to it being injured & unable to carry him. The burst no doubt would’ve injuring Harris also, though there is no mention of injury or wound in unit diary

In January 1902, Geoff re-enlisted for service in South Africa & was appointed as Lieutenant with A Squadron of the 1st (NSW) Battalion, Australian Commonwealth Horse

He was with the ACH in South Africa from 19 March 1902, returning home on 11 August

For his service in South Africa, Geoff was awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal with bars, CAPE COLONY ; DREIFONTEIN ; JOHANNESBURG ; DIAMOND HILL ; BELFAST ; SOUTH AFRICA 1901 & SOUTH AFRICA 1902

In the post-Boer War / pre-WW1 years, Geoff, along with other Tumut boys, settled in New Hebrides, spending a number of years in the employ of the Burns, Philip & Co. Ltd. – (Geoff & Meecham had settled on Malekula Island)

Geoff returned to Tumut in January 1910 owing to suffering from Malaria

In 1913, Geoff was heavily involved in having a Light Horse Troop formed in Adelong & another in Tumut, which was ultimately successful, with the formation of the Adelong Troop of the 11th Light Horse (Australian Horse) & Tumut Troop on 26 July, with Geoff being appointed Lieutenant as the new Tumut Troop Leader

Having been appointed 2nd Lieutenant in the Australian Imperial Force on 27 July 1914, Geoff made his attestation in September & was allocated to the 1st Australian Light Horse Regiment, 'B' Squadron as Officer Commanding 'C' Troop

The Regiment embarked for the Middle East from Sydney, on board HMAT (A16) Star of Victoria on 20 October 1914, disembarking in Egypt on 8 December & took part in the North African Campaign defending the Suez Canal from a German-led Ottoman Army force advancing from Southern Palestine

Geoff was promoted to Lieutenant on 1 February

During the month of April, a 'sham' fight was carried out against the 2nd Light Horse Brigade encamped at Maadi & a Troop of Scouts was formed under Lieut. Harris for training

Geoff disembarked at Anzac on 12 May. The regiment spent the majority of their time garrisoning Pope's & Quinn's Post

1st Light Horse 'charge' at Dead Man's Ridge, 6/7 August

As recounted by Harris - "On August 6, 1915, the position of the 1st Light Horse Brigade was: The 1st Light Horse holding Pope's Hill; 2nd Light Horse Regiment, Quinn's Post & 3rd Light Horse Regiment in support

The 3rd Light Horse Brigade held Walker's Ridge on our left. Regimental orders were for the 1st Regiment to attack the 'chess-board' formation of trenches on the left of the Bloody Angle, at daylight on August 7, in conjunction with the attack of the 3rd Light Horse Brigade at 'The Nek' & 2nd Light Horse Regiment, on the trenches in font of Quinn's

Taking our time in rotation from the left - A Squadron Bomb Throwers, under Lieut. Tinson, to go over the top immediately after the 3rd Brigade attacked ; B Squadron Bomb Throwers under my command to proceed by way of the gully on our right, up the waterfall under the Bloody Angle & then to creep up in the dark & lie along under the shelter of the parapet of the first Turkish trench on our front & to await A Squadron's signal that it was going over & then to attack

The remainder of A & B Squadron's to follow & support their own bombers under the command of Major Moffat Reid & Captain Wallace Cox. C Squadron to remain in & hold our front line & to support our attack with their covering fire

At 3:30am on August 7, I fell in my little party of 12 bomb throwers & 12 riflemen with fixed bayonets in support. The latter were to use the cold steel. We marched silently down our communication trenches to the gully, where we waited ten minutes, while the Engineers opened the barbed wire entanglements for us to get through. Then up to the waterfall (which we scaled), to be met by a shower of Turkish bombs before we had time to get into any sort of order

I immediately gave the order to charge & we quickly took the first two lines of trenches in our course bombing the Turks out. Meanwhile, A Squadron, seeing that we had been forced to show our hand, went over & quickly took the first trench & some of the members reached the second, but were either killed or driven back. Lieut. Tinson was mortally wounded ; Major Reid was killed; Lieut's. White & MacMillan were both wounded

In the first ten minutes A Squadron was practically put out of action - over 50 percent were killed or wounded in the first rush. Some of the troops worked down the gully & joined B Squadron. Others helped back many of the wounded down the waterfall. Some of the wounded came on with B Squadron supports & were killed later on

Meanwhile, our bombers went on & took the third line of trenches on a narrow front & we could just see the Turks getting back along their communication trenches. It was just breaking daylight when we went over the hill to be met by the crescent trench, full of Turks, half out of their trench, waiting for us. Machine-guns were barking on three sides of us. Seeing that we could get no further, I gave the order "Down" & went to earth just as a bullet hit my shoulder. Sgt. 'Guy' Ellis (S/N 253, true name Edward Gaille) who had stuck close to me from the start, went down on my right - killed instantly, riddled with bullets at close range. Luckily, I fell in a small depression out of sight of the Turks

Then, the 2nd Light Horse Regt charged on our right, the Turks in front of me turned & directed the whole of their fire on to Quinn's Post & I was able to get up & walk back without having a shot fired at me, leaving poor Ellis to mark the farthest point any of our men had reached. Our Trumpeter (321 Tpr. William Dalgleish Oliver) was lying on top of the hill with a bullet through his leg & that was all that was left of my 24 men

Getting back to the third line of Turkish trenches I passed the wounded Trumpeter over & told him to crawl down to B Squadron supports & send me up reinforcements. In the meantime I found a lot of Turkish bombs & secured two Turks as prisoners. Five men came up to my support & we had a bomb fight with the Turks for over an hour, when Maj. Glasgow, Lt. Nettleton & Lt. Weir, with 16 men, came up to join us & help consolidate our position

The 3rd Brigade went over on Walker's Ridge fully an hour after we did. As the attack had been delayed on its left, the men were met by heavy machine-gun fire & never reached their objective. The 2nd Regiment was also beaten back on our right

At 8am, after we had consolidated our position & used some 1100 bombs which were sent up to us from Brigade, we were ordered to retire as our position was untenable. When we reached our regimental lines I received orders to fall in all the men left of A & B Squadron's & get them into the line with C Squadron. All I could muster was 32 men, of whom 24 were wounded. Others came in later - but very few

In the morning we went out 199 strong. Nettleton was killed bringing a message back from Maj. Glasgow. Weir & Reid were both wounded (Reid was killed in action). Capt. Cox was mortally wounded early in the attack & died on the hospital boat that day. Lieut. Tinson was also mortally wounded & died two days later. Three days later I was in No. 1 A.G.H (Australian General Hospital), Heliopolis & heard a Sister say, "Now, it is your turn. Where were you hit?" Thank God for the Sisters!"

During the offensive on 6/7 August, the 1st LH Regiment lost 50 men killed & 98 wounded at Dead Man's Ridge & the 2nd LH Regiment lost 16 killed and 37 wounded of the 56 who charged in the first wave at Quinn's Post. Though these was in stark contrast to the 3rd LH Brigade who lost 372 of the 8th & 10th LH Regiments killed & wounded at 'The Nek'

**Note – During a meeting regarding conscription in 1916, "A young fellow in Gundagai tells the tale that he was lying on no-man's-land in a semi-conscious state, with 21 wounds in his body from shrapnel & midst a shower of bullets someone carried him off the field out of further danger ; to his surprise, on being placed in safety, he found on looking at his benefactor that it was Captain G. H. L Harris from Tumut"

Geoff was evacuated from the peninsula due to his gunshot wound later that day, arriving back in Egypt, being admitted to Hospital at Helipolis on the 10 August & re-joined the Regiment now at No.1 Outpost on 24 October, where they remained until the evacuation of the peninsula in December

Geoff was appointed as Temp/Officer Commanding 'C' Squadron on 7 November, due to Major Granville being wounded & was appointed as Temp/Captain on the 14th

In a well-planned operation, Allied forces withdrew from Anzac & Suvla between 15–20 December. Planning moved quickly & efficiently. The evacuation of Anzac started on 15 December. Over 5 nights, 36,000 troops were withdrawn to the waiting transport ships

Major Granville’s rear party consisting of 8 officers (including Harris) & 67 other ranks remained behind as the regiment evacuated. They had orders to die at their post if attacked, in order to deceive the enemy & prevent information of the evacuation from leaking. By 3:20am on the 20th, all the remaining garrison were in Maori Sap running for the beach with socks pulled over their boots to muffle the sound. While they were in Maori Sap, Walker's Ridge mine was blown up, whereupon the enemy commenced a tremendous fire on the front line & communication trenches, which was kept up long after the party was well out to sea

The Regiment arrived back in Egypt on 26 December, where following a period of rest & re-fit, they returned to a mounted role & were assigned to the Anzac Mounted Division under the command of Major General Harry Chauvel for the upcoming campaign into Sinai & Palestine

Harris was recommended for a French Croix de Guerre (for Dead Man's Ridge) - His recommendation stating : "For gallant conduct on 7th August 1915, in assault from Pope's Hill. Although wounded, this Officer continued to throw bombs & with his Troop, covered the withdrawal of the assaulting force" – This was not awarded

Harris was Mentioned in Despatches (First Occasion - for Dead Man’s Ridge)
Promulgated in the London Gazette (92354) of 5 November 1915

Harris was awarded the Military Cross (for Dead Man’s Ridge) - His recommendation reading : "Commanded a Troop in attacking from Pope's Post on Turkish Trenches on Dead Man's Ridge. Was severely wounded, but remained in action until the fight was over, throwing bombs for 2 hours & with his Troop, covered the withdrawal of the rest of the Squadron"
Promulgated in the London Gazette (29438) of 11 January 1916

Harris was Mentioned in Despatches (Second Occasion - for Gallipoli Evacuation)
Promulgated in the London Gazette (29455) of 20 January 1916

Between 8 – 24 March 1916, Harris was detached to Headquarters, Highland Mounted Brigade who were serving on Suez Canal defences as part of the Western Frontier Force

Geoff was promoted Captain on 13 April 1916

Back with the Regiment, Geoff took part in the Battle of Romani, 3-4 August 1916, where he was wounded in action (second occasion) with a gunshot wound to L/hand & shoulder during the fighting at Mount Meredith near Romani & subsequently evacuated back to hospital at Heliopolis – His brother 2563 Trooper George Thomas Hamlyn Harris of B Squadron was also WIA during the battle on 4 August. He had only been with the Regiment four weeks

Geoff was invalided to England on board HMT Gloucester Castle on 30 September, being admitted to 4th London Hospital on 12 October

Whilst in England, it was reported that "Captain Geoff Harris has been summoned by the King to attend at Buckingham Palace to be decorated by His Majesty with an 'emblem of honor' for heroic service on the battlefield" – I’ve not determined what the emblem was, but he likely was decorated with his Military Cross

Geoff embarked for return to the Middle East on 21 November, disembarking in Egypt on 13 December & re-joining the Regiment at Ghurfan el Gimal on the 17th

He went on to fight at the Battle of Magdhaba, 23 December 1916 & the Battle of Rafa, 9 January 1917

Geoff was detached to the School of Instruction at Zeitoun for a Hotchkiss machine-gun course on 26 January, re-joining the Regiment on 18 February

He went on to fight at the Second Battle of Gaza, 17-19 April 1917

Major D. W. A. Smith left on 3 June 1917, invalided to Australia & Capt. Harris was promoted to Major & appointed to command of 'C' Squadron

Geoff was detached to the School of Instruction at Zeitoun 20 October, re-joining the Regiment on 19 November, thus missing the Regiments involvement at Tel el Saba in support of the Battle of Beersheba on 31 October

As Commander of C Squadron, Geoff led his men in :
- The Capture of Jericho, 19-21 February 1918
- The First Battle of the Jordan (First Battle of Amman), 21 March-2 April 1918
- The Second Battle of the Jordan (Es Salt Raid), 30 April-4 May 1918
- The Third Transjordan Attack, 19-25 September 1918
- The Capture of Kh Fasail, 21 September 1918
- The Battle of Jordan River Crossings, 22 September 1918
- The Third Battle 'Capture' of Es Salt, 23 September 1918
- The Second Battle of Amman, 25 September 1918

Harris was Mentioned in Despatches (Third Occasion - for Operations 15 Sep – 31 Oct 1918) - His recommendation stating : "For period from 19th September to 31 October 1918 – For dedication to duty & fine leadership in the leading of his Squadron on 25 September in the attack on railway line at Ain Ghaxil & subsequent capture of Amman Railway Station & later with the Squadron carrying out a very successful reconnaissance to Mafrak on 28 September – This Officer has always shown most coolness & courage on every occasion & has gallant work right through the campaigns of Gallipoli, Sinai & Palestine"
Promulgated in the London Gazette (31728) of 5 March 1919

Following the cessation of hostilities, the Regiment began their embarkation for return to Australia. Geoff embarked on board SS Ulimaroa on 13 March 1919, disembarking in Sydney on 14 April

Geoff’s appointment in the AIF was terminated on 23 June & he returned to service in the Militia Forces

From November 1921 to October 1937, Geoff commanded the 7th Light Horse (Australian Horse), retiring with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel

He was at one time, appointed as the Tumut Show President, a position he held for a number of years until being appointed as Show Secretary in Goulburn in July 1929

Geoff was awarded his long service medal, the Colonial Auxiliary Forces Officers' Decoration in 1928 & the Kings Jubilee Medal in 1935

Geoff's son Frederick Lavicount Harris, attested for the Second Australian Imperial Force on 13 July 1940 & was allocated as NX34662 Lieutenant with the 2/19th Infantry Battalion & promoted to Captain a month later. The Battalion fought against the Japanese during the disastrous Malaya Campaign, with most being killed or captured following the Fall of Singapore in February 1902. Fred was one of those captured & he spent the remainder of the war as a prisoner of the Japanese in Thailand until they were liberated in Siam at the end of the war in 1945

Geoff passed away in Manly, New South Wales on 24 May 1964 age 82y 6m. He is buried at the Tumut New Cemetery, Plot CE Old Section S31-32, Snowy Valleys Council, New South Wales